Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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~ ROUND OF THE lNV~. ~ION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a swinging door leaf for
vehicles, particularly motor vehicles, wherein the swinging door
leaf is swung inwardly by means of swinging arms which are
actuated by a rotary column, and wherein the lower horizontal
edge of the swinging door leaf is provided with a sealing strip
or ledge.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the swinging door leaf disclosed in DE 80 09 490 U1, the
sealing strip is attached to the swinging door leaf so as to be
pivotable, particularly so as to be bendable or capable of
buckling, wherein the lower swinging arm is mounted underneath
the buckling point of the sealing strip.
This sealing strip does not extend over the entire width of
the door leaf, but only over that portion which during the
swinging movement comes into the travel path of the lower
swinging arm, since otherwise the outwardly swung sealing strip
would collide with the door post pipe. At the remaining portion
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of the door leaf is providecl a sealing means in the form of a
brush which simultaneously constitutes a stop for the sealing
strip.
In accordance with the single embodiment illustrated and not
further discussed in DE 80 09 490 U1, the sealing strip is
composed of a metal section which is flexibly hinged by means of
a rubber band which is bone-shaped in cross-section to a
corresponding section at the lower edge of the door. During the
opening movement of the door leaf, the sealing strip comes into
contact with the swinging arm which results in bending of the
rubber band, so that the sealing ledge is pivoted from its
essentially vertical sealing position with the door being closed
into an essentially horizont:al upwardly-swung position with the
door being open.
In practical use, this configuration has several
disadvantages, such as the r-apid wear of the rubber band which
absorbs bending loads and the wear of the sealing strip which is
continuously subjected to abrasions. In addition, because of the
multiple-part configuration of the entire sealing unit, a precise
adjustment is required not only during the original assembly but
also during later maintenance and exchange operations, wherein
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these adjustments are difficult in the area of the lower end of
the door leaf.
CA 0223~4~6 1998-04-21
SUMMARY OF THE lN vh~ ON
Therefore, it is the primary object of the present invention
to provide a swinging door l.eaf which does not have the above-
described disadvantages.
rn accordance with the present invention, the sealing strip
is composed over its entire length of a rubber-elastic material
or synthetic material and the sealing strip is pivotably attached
to the inner lower edge of t.he door leaf in the closed position
of the door leaf.
As a result of the configuration according to the present
invention, the pivot axis, ~hich preferably is constructed as the
weak point in the sealing st.rip material, is placed on the clean
and warm side of the door where the door is better capable of
withstanding mechanical and weather influences. In addition, in
accordance with a specific embodiment, it is possible to limit
the pivoting angle to about 45 degrees which means that this
pivoting angle is only half that of the prior art and contributes
significantly to the improvement of the service life of the
sealing strip. Since, moreover, the sealing strip is constructed
as a single piece and extend.s preferably over the entire width of
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the door leaf, the replacement of the sealing strip is also
significantly simplified.
lrhe various features of novelty which characterize the
invention are pointed out wi.th particularity in the claims
annexed to and forming a part of the disclosure. For a better
understanding of the inventi.on, its operating advantages,
specific objects attained by its use, reference should be had to
the drawing and descriptive matter in which there are illustrated
and described preferred embodiments of the invention.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
In the drawing:
Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a swinging door leaf in
accordance with the present invention shown in the closed
position;
Fig. 2 is a top view of a swinging door leaf according to
the present invention in which the closed position is illustrated
in solid lines and the open position is shown in broken lines;
and
Fig. 3 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the
swinging door leaf according to the present invention.
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DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
As illustrated in Fig. 1 of the drawing, a sealing strip 3
of rubber or synthetic material is attached to the lower end of a
door leaf 1, for example, by means of a fastening ledge or plate
3. In the illustrated embodiment, fastening is effected by means
of a counterledge 4, wherein the entire assembly composed of
sealing strip 3, counterledge 4 and fastening ledge 2 is fastened
with only a few screws or rivets to the lower end of the door
leaf L.
~ ig. 2 of the drawing shows how the door leaf 1 is moved by
means of a door post pipe 5 and swinging arms 6 arranged at the
lower and upper ends of the door post pipe 5, wherein Fig. 2 only
shows the lower swinging arm 6.
rn the closed position of the door leaf 1, the door leaf 1
closes an opening of a vehicle, illustrated in the form of a
frame 7. By means of a bracket or attachment 8, only illustrated
in Fig. 2, above the sealing ledge 3, the door leaf 1 is
connected in an articulated manner to the swinging arm 6. When
the door leaf 1 is opened, the main closing edge 9 of the door
leaf :L reaches that area of the door opening in which the
auxil:iary closing edge 10 ic located when the door is closed.
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The auxiliary closing edge 10, in turn, moves essentially
linearly and perpendicularly of the outer surface of the vehicle
into ~he interior of the vehicle.
]~uring this movement, t:he door leaf 1 moves past the
swinging arm 6 which is made possible by pivoting or swinging the
sealing strip 3 upwardly.
i~s illustrated in Fig. 1, the lower swinging arm 6 has at
least in that area which comes into contact with the sealing
strip 3 a cross-sectional shape which facilitates the upward
pivot:ing of the sealing strip 3.
Moreover, the upper surface of the swinging arm 6 is in this
area composed of a material which reduces friction and is
provided with ribs or ledgeF which are preferably clamped, glued,
screwed or attached in another manner to the swinging arm 6,
wherein the ribs or ledges act as chafe ledges and are
constructed as intentional wear articles and serve to protect the
swinging arm 6 or the paint thereon against abrasion.
:[n the same manner, elements which increase the sliding
capability are fastened on that area of the sealing strip 3 which
comes into contact with the swinging arm, or these elements are
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already incorporated during the manufacture of the sealing strip
3.
As can be seen in Fig. 1, the sealing strip 3 according to
the present invention is only swung by about 45 degrees in order
to be completely moved out of the range of movement of the
swinging arm 3; this constit,utes half of the swinging angle
required in the prior art and results in a higher than
proportional reduction of the attendant wear and stress in the
plVOt ax1s area.
~ s shown in Fig. 1, the door leaf 1 is constructed with an
outer protrusion 11 which represents a limit of the possibility
of swinging the sealing strip 3. In the illustrated embodiment,
the sealing strip 3 is provided with an additional lid 12 which
comes into contact with the fastening ledge 2 when the door leaf
1 assumes the closed position and, thus, also serves to limit the
pivoting movement of the sealing strip 3.
.~s illustrated in Fig. 1, the counterledge 4 is preferably
bent or folded at the lower end thereof in order to produce a
uniform distribution of the deformation of the fastening lid 15
of the sealing strip 3 during the pivoting movement thereof, so
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that the service life of the sealing strip 3 is further
increased.
In the embodiment according to Fig. 3, the fastening ledge
and the counterledge 4 are constructed as a single piece in the
form of a support section 16 which is connected, in a manner
which is not illustrated, to the door leaf 1. In this
embodiment, a chafe ledge 17 is mounted on the sealing strip 3,
wherein the chafe ledge 17 may also be composed of individual
short sections and has a low coefficient of friction especially
with :respect to the cover layer 18 of the swinging arm 6. The
chafe ledge 17 is preferably slid onto the sealing strip; in the
embodiment of Fig. 3, the chafe ledge 17 is pushed into the
suppo:rt section 16.
'rhe present invention is not limited to the embodiments
illustrated in the drawing. Rather, various modifications are
possible. For example, the fastening ledge 2 may be placed in a
recess of the door leaf 1 so that the fastening ledge 2 is flush
with lhe inner surface of the door leaf on the inner side of the
door. Of course, a door equipped with the features according to
the present invention may also have two door leafs.
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~ rhe sealing strip 3 is of a rubber-elastic material as it is
conventionally used for seals of vehicle doors, such as synthetic
rubber or natural rubber, or synthetic material, etc. In
addition, the sealing strip 3 may be reinforced. Possible
materials of the fastening ledge 2, the counterledge 3 or the
suppo:rt section 16 are aluminum, possibly as a continuously cast
section, and also stainless steel in the case of the counterledge
3. The chafe ledge 17 may be of thermoplastic polyester or
polyamide and the cover layer 18 may be polyamide or also
stain:Less steel. Of course, in view of the features of the
present invention and the respective stresses, those skilled in
the a:rt of door construction for vehicles will choose any
suitable material.
~ hile specific embodiments of the invention have been shown
and described in detail to illustrate the inventive principles,
it wi:Ll be understood that the invention may be embodied
othen~ise without departing from such principles.
